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Friday, 28 November 2014

Well, here we are - my final year-end top 100... until I count down my favourite songs for 2014 in a few weeks' time. And, since I've already completed my lists for 2012 and 2013 on this blog, we're concluding my journey through years past with 2011.

Calvin Harris found himself some US chart action in 2011

For me, 2011 was a pretty unremarkable year, but it was anything but that in the wider world - with news dominated by the Royal Wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton, the death of Osama bin Laden, the rise of the Occupy Wall Street movement, and the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Here were some of the songs making headlines (for me, at least) that year...Number 100 "Rocketeer" by Far East Movement featuring Ryan TedderI wasn't so keen on Far East Movement's 2010 breakthrough hit, "Like A G6", but it was a different story when it came to follow-up "Rocketeer" - although that was mainly due to the fact that the latter was co-written by Bruno Mars and featured OneRepublic's Ryan Tedder on vocals.

Number 99 "Junk Of The Heart (Happy)" by The KooksLike Kaiser Chiefs and Razorlight before them, The Kooks found their fortunes fading with the release of their third album, as singles like "Junk Of The Heart (Happy)" and "Is It Me" failed to hit the UK top 40, and the album barely scraped the top 10. Musically, the band seemed to have lost their edge as well - and while I still enjoyed their music, it did seem a bit more middle of the road than previously.

Number 98 Beth Ditto EP by Beth DittoTaking another break from her duties as Gossip frontwoman (following her Simian Mobile Disco collaboration in 2009), Beth Ditto released a self-titled four-track EP in 2011 on the Deconstruction label. Track 2, "I Wrote The Book", was lifted as a single and came with a Madonna-referencing music video.

Number 97 "Lights" by Ellie GouldingSome songs take a while to become hits - and then there's "Lights", which first surfaced as a bonus track on Ellie Goulding's debut album of the same name in February 2010. Remixed for the album's repackage as Bright Lights towards the end of the year, "Lights" was eventually released as a single in its own right in early 2011 - and while it didn't even manage a place in the UK top 40, it went all the way to number 2 in the US (although it took 33 weeks to get there).

Number 96 "Mirrors" by Natalia KillsMentioned in Part 2Number 95 "It's Too Late" by JESPreviously a member of dance act Motorcycle (responsible for 2004's "As The Rush Comes") before signing to Dutch DJ/producer Tiësto's record label as a solo artists, American singer Jes Brieden released her third album, High Glow, in 2010, from which "It's Too Late" was the fourth single. The mix in the music video isn't the one I like - but I need to work my way through all the remixes that exist to work out which version it is I have.

Number 94 "Warzone" by The WantedMentioned in Part 2Number 93 "Summersun" by Miami HorrorThe fifth and final single from their debut album, Illumination, was another non-hit for Australia's own New Order - and doesn't seem to have had a music video made for it. It'd be two years before we'd hear any new music from the Melbourne-based synthpop group - but so far they haven't released anything as good.

Number 92 "Gold Forever" by The WantedMentioned in Part 2Number 91 "Hair" by Lady GagaMentioned in Part 4Number 90 "Feel So Close" by Calvin HarrisHe'd enjoyed hits in the UK for years, but in 2011, Scottish DJ/producer Calvin Harris went global - with a little thanks to Rihanna (whose single "We Found Love" he wrote, produced and featured on). As a result of that track's success, "Feel So Close", which had actually preceded "We Found Love", became Calvin's first single in his own right to hit the Billboard Hot 100. In the UK, "Feel So Close" was the second of eight singles from eventual album 18 Months - all of them top 10 hits (including four consecutive number 2s).

Number 89 "All Fired Up" by The SaturdaysAnother act getting used to big UK hits was girl group The Saturdays, who'd only failed to reach the top 10 with one of their previous singles ("Work"). They made it again with this club-oriented track, which hit number 3. Included among the seven songwriters credited on the song was production team Xenomania, who'd traditionally worked with Girls Aloud but got their girl group fix in 2011 from The Saturdays instead.

Number 85 "Ready 2 Go" by Martin Solveig featuring KeleFor once not working with Dragonette, French DJ/producer Martin Solveig enlisted the vocal services of Bloc Party singer Kele Okereke instead for this third single from the Smash album.

Number 84 "Sexual Lifestyle" by Strange TalkWhile Miami Horror wound up their debut album campaign, another Australian synthpop band was just getting started. "Sexual Lifestyle" was the second release by fellow Melbourne group Strange Talk, whose self-titled EP had come out earlier in 2011.

Number 80 "Starlight" by Sophie Ellis-BextorIncluding singles dating back to 2009's "Heartbreak (Make Me A Dancer)", Sophie Ellis-Bextor's fourth album, Make A Scene, might have been her least commercially successful but it didn't mean she had to go and shift musical direction (with this year's Wanderlust). Besides "Starlight", which was Make A Scene's sixth single, album track "Dial My Number" (number 86 on this list) also makes my top 100 for the year.

Number 79 "Come On" by Will YoungMentioned in Part 4Number 78 "Black Out The Sun" by Darren HayesMentioned in Part 3Number 77 "A Day Late And A Dollar Short" by Scritti PolittiIt'd been five years since Scritti Politti's last studio album and two decades since they'd released anything I'd enjoyed, so it was a bit of a surprise when best of retrospective Absolute was released in 2011. Two new tracks were included on the album, both of which saw frontman Green Gartside reunite with former band member David Gamson, who was involved in the two Scritti Politti albums I liked: Cupid And Psyche 85 and Provision. As a result, "A Day Late And A Dollar Short" became my favourite song by the band since 1991's "She's A Woman".

Wednesday, 26 November 2014

Everything old was new again on the ARIA chart this week in 1989, with a couple of comebacks by artists that had been hugely successful at the start of the decade and the return of a song that'd been a massive hit five years earlier.

The B-52's and their funky little shack took the chart by storm

OK, not everything was old, with another Italo house release making the top 50 and the brand new musical project for a former girl group member. But with the top four dominated by veteran acts and songs, the top 50 was beginning to feel a little long in the tooth.

Breakers"Ghostbusters" by Run DMCPeak: number 56The original version of the song reached number 2 and spent a mammoth 21 weeks in the top 10 back in 1984 when the first Ghostbusters film was released, but this revamped version for the sequel by rap trio Run DMC missed the top 50 altogether. Sounding more like something you'd expect from The Fat Boys, the trio's update of the Ray Parker Jr classic did avoid the elements of the original that had resulted in an out-of-court settlement with Huey Lewis & The News (for sounding too similar to "I Want A New Drug"). Lesson learnt, then. The Ghostbusters II soundtrack would produce a bigger hit than this - and we'll see it arrive on the top 50 next week.

"Everyday Now" by TexasPeak: number 52Last week, we saw perpetual chart misser Debbie Gibson once again fail to crack the top 50 with her latest release - and here was another act who were starting to make a habit of falling short. As it did in the UK, "Everyday Now" made a slight improvement on predecessor "Thrill Has Gone" (which reached number 60 in Australia a couple of months earlier), but not enough to break the one-hit wonder tag Texas would wear for quite a few years to come. Small wonder, since the band's third single was another bland tune that lacked the spark of debut release "I Don't Want A Lover".

New EntriesNumber 49 "Numero Uno" by StarlightPeak: number 23While "Ride On Time" leapt up to number 14 on this week's chart, another Italo house single masterminded by the same producers (Daniele Davoli, Mirko Limoni and Valerio Semplici) under one of their many aliases bulleted into the top 50. "Numero Uno" wouldn't end up as big a hit as the Black Box single but it did establish that Australia's appetite for dance tracks had increased since the start of the year when club hits by Soul II Soul and Inner City failed to make much of an impression.

Number 48 "You're History" by Shakespear's SisterPeak: number 20Bananarama had moved on since the departure of founding member Siobhan Fahey, and now the fruits of her labour away from the girl group found their way onto the chart. "You're History" couldn't have been more different from "I Want You Back", "Nathan Jones" or "Love, Truth And Honesty", which made sense given Siobhan left Bananarama because she was unhappy about the trio's musical direction (thanks to producers Stock Aitken Waterman). Named after a slightly differently spelt song by The Smiths, Shakespear's Sister (the apostrophe was still intact at this stage) had started out as a solo project for Siobhan, and "Break My Heart (You Really) / Heroine" was released as a double A-side debut single. But, one became two when collaborator Marcella Detroit was promoted to regular band member status - and "You're History" established the vocally mismatched pair as a unique force in music.

Number 34 "I Want That Man" by Deborah HarryPeak: number 2At 44 years of age, Deborah (not Debbie, anymore) Harry ranked as one of pop's elder stateswomen but proved her best days weren't behind her with this lead single from the Def, Dumb & Blonde album - at least in Australia. While "I Want That Man" was a massive hit locally, it didn't even make the Billboard Hot 100 and missed the UK top 10. In fact, in America, Deborah never had a top 40 solo hit - a far cry from all the success she enjoyed as lead singer of Blondie. Written by Thompson Twins' Tom Bailey and Alannah Currie, the song features the line "here comes the 21st Century" and, as a result, was one of many songs re-released in time for Y2K to cash in on their lyrical relevance (see also: "1999", "The Final Countdown").

Number 27 "Love Shack" by The B-52'sPeak: number 1The B-52's had had a rough time of it since their last appearances on the ARIA top 50 back in the early '80s. Musically, they released two less-than-successful albums in the form of Whammy! and Bouncing Off The Satellites, and tragically, founding band member Ricky Wilson passed away in 1985. "Love Shack" changed all that. The second single from 1989's Cosmic Thing album - the first, "Channel Z", would be re-released in 1990 - it was as unique and quirky as earlier hits "Rock Lobster" or "Private Idaho" but thanks to production from Don Was (of Was (Not Was) fame), it was much more commercial than either of those songs.With quotable lyrics like "so hurry up and bring your jukebox money", "hop in my Chrysler, it's as big as a whale and it's about to set sail" and the initially indecipherable "tin roof, rusted", "Love Shack" quickly became the song of summer '89/'90, spending eight weeks at number 1 and entering into the wedding reception/21st birthday party canon. Like "Mickey" and "Come On Eileen", "Love Shack" was almost ruined thanks to being flogged to death, but there's no denying it's a brilliant and totally original song.

Next week: the arrival of the aforementioned hit single from Ghostbusters II, another new dance hit and Jive Bunny starts to multiply like, well, you know.

Wednesday, 19 November 2014

In the almost two-and-a-half years that I've been writing this blog, the thing that's surprised me the most has been just how many novelty songs hit the ARIA top 50 in the late '80s. Of course, novelty records can take several forms - the intentionally funny (Morris Minor & The Majors, Kylie Mole), the sci-fi tie-in (The Firm, The Timelords, ALF) and the lewd (Clarence Carter), for example.

There was nothing funny about Phil Collins' 1989 album

This week 25 years ago, two novelty songs entered the ARIA singles chart - one aiming for laughs from a well-known group of comedians, and the other incorporating sounds that made it both titillating and a guaranteed hit.

Breakers"Hide Your Heart" by KISSPeak: number 60A few weeks back, we saw the debut of Tina Turner's "The Best", a song originally recorded by Bonnie Tyler. And here's another track released by the Welsh singer before it went on to be made more famous by a different act. This time, however, the song was actually co-written by KISS member Paul Stanley, which explains why the band might've wanted to try their hand at it, including it on their Hot In The Shade album and releasing it as the lead single. Interestingly, a rival version was also recorded by former KISS member Ace Frehley for his Trouble Walkin' album, which came out around the same time. Even more curious was the fact that despite "Hide Your Heart" not being that great a song, two more covers were recorded in 1989 - one by Molly Hatchet (a band) and another by Robin Beck (a solo female artist who hit number 1 in the UK in 1988 with Coke ad theme "First Time").

"We Could Be Together" by Debbie GibsonPeak: number 57Poor Debbie Gibson - she really did seem destined to just miss the top 50 more often than she cracked it. Hot on the heels of number 58 single "No More Rhyme", this fourth release from Electric Youth also puttered out just short of the chart. And, like the album's title track, "We Could Be Together" was another song that seemed to go on and on, with a couple of bridges, an a cappella bit and a never-ending series of choruses - and that was with a minute cut off the album version.

New entriesNumber 49 "French Kiss" by Lil LouisPeak: number 35Let's face it, the only reason this otherwise repetitive dance track made such an impact on charts (including a number 2 peak in the UK) is because of the sexual moaning in the middle when the BPM drops. I was in Year 9 at the time and remember playing "French Kiss" to a group of class-mates who were instantly taken with the track - after all, no one gets more excited by moaning women than 14-year-old boys. Speaking of kids, call me a prude, but I'm not sure of the appropriateness of featuring youngsters in the music video of a song with an orgasmic breakdown.

Rude sex noises aside, "French Kiss" is in one other way literally a novelty record, since the slowing down and complete stopping of the beat was unprecedented. The track was the only hit for Lil Louis, aka Louis Sims, but it's lived on thanks to it being regularly sampled in the years since.

Number 48 "Another Day In Paradise" by Phil CollinsPeak: number 11Now he'd finished with his acting work (for the time being), Phil Collins got on with his day job as a recording artist and released his latest studio album, ...But Seriously - his first in four years. "Another Day In Paradise" was the ultra-serious lead single from the album and Phil's 20th solo single of the '80s - and one of my least favourite. The song about homelessness was also the first of six singles that would end up being taken from the album, and easily the most successful - a number 1 in the US, a number 2 in the UK and the Grammy Award winner for Record Of The Year.

Number 43 "Don't Wanna Lose You" by Gloria EstefanPeak: number 40Here's another dreary ballad - and another US number 1 - from an artist whose music I otherwise liked in the '80s. The Diana Ross of the Latin music scene, Gloria completed her transition from Miami Sound Machine member to named vocalist to solo star with her 1989 album, Cuts Both Ways. Not a massive hit in Australia, "Don't Wanna Lose You" at least did better than its American follow-up, the far superior and much more energetic "Get On Your Feet", which belatedly reached number 98 in late 1990 after Gloria's Australian record company had exhausted all the album's big ballad singles.

Number 34 "Sometimes" by Max QPeak: number 31Looks like the, er, novelty of the Max Q project wore off pretty quickly, with Michael Hutchence's side project from INXS stumbling when this second single fell some way short of the top 10 achievement of debut release "Way Of The World". A third single, "Monday Night By Satellite", from the band's self-titled album was released in 1990, but it didn't even reach the top 100 - and that was that.

Number 29 "Five In A Row" by The D-GenerationPeak: number 12This week's second novelty record was the first of two parody singles by comedy team The D-Generation, who at that stage were a few years out of university, and making a name for themselves in TV specials and a breakfast show on Melbourne's Triple M. Taking easy shots at a handful of Australia's most prominent music stars (John Farnham, Jimmy Barnes, Little River Band, Kylie Minogue and James Reyne), the gags in "Five In A Row" are linked together by patter from a radio DJ character played by Rob Sitch. While the whole thing was reasonably amusing, I can't for the life of me think why you'd want to own the record and play it again and again, especially without the music video.

Next week: the song of the summer (and wedding receptions for decades to come) arrives, plus more Italo house and the return of one of the most iconic singers of the late '70s and early '80s.

Tuesday, 18 November 2014

Thanks to digital downloading, singles sales were higher than ever in 2010. The downside for the music industry? The ability of the consumer to pick and choose tracks would have an impact on albums sales. Another side effect was that an increasing amount of artists didn't even bother to release albums, issuing EPs instead. It made sense - why go to the expense of producing 15 tracks, many of which would be fillers and only some of which would sell, when you could release a handful of higher quality tunes that would be more likely to be snapped up? And it wasn't just emerging artists using the format.

So stylish it Hurts - my favourite new band in 2010

As a pop fan, EPs had never been that prominent on my charts - save for the odd Erasure release, the format was traditionally the domain of indie bands. So, I wasn't quite sure how they should factor into my chart - especially since I was already allowing album tracks to be included. Should I also allow multiple tracks from an EP as separate entries or group them together like a single? My answer to that question would change over the coming years. Watch out for a couple of songs from EPs in my top 25 for 2010...

Number 25 "What If" by Jason DeruloMentioned belowNumber 24 "Lose My Mind" by The WantedJust when it seemed like the age of the boy band was finally over, along came a five-piece from the UK (and Ireland, if we want to be completely accurate) who took advantage of a complete lack of competition to quickly become the hottest pop property on the charts. The Wanted's debut single "All Time Low" was a chart-topper in the UK, but it was this third single that convinced me (even though it was only a number 19 hit in Britain). The Wanted would consolidate their position over the next few years, and, possibly more importantly, open the boy band door back up for subsequent acts like One Direction and 5 Seconds Of Summer.

Number 23 "Higher" by The Saturdays featuring Flo RidaGirl groups were also pretty thin on the ground in 2010, with Girls Aloud, Sugababes and Pussycat Dolls all winding down or on a break. Thank goodness for The Saturdays, who kept on churning out singles and with "Higher" came up with a second genuinely brilliant single (following 2009's "Forever Is Over").

Number 22 "Time Machine" by RobynMentioned belowNumber 21 "Beautiful Monster" by Ne-YoIt's not often you hear of a pop/R&B act doing a concept album, but that exactly what Ne-Yo was going for with his 2010 opus, Libra Scale. During the year, he visited Australia to explain the album and play a few videos to media - and I have to say, I appreciated his enthusiasm and imagination. In a world where artists were increasingly releasing any old party/clubbing track in an attempt to cash in on the popularity of EDM, it was nice to hear the thought that had gone into Ne-Yo's album and how the songs tied in with the plot he'd invented. Of course, all the complicated stories about garbage men imbued with super powers in the world would've made no difference if the songs weren't up to scratch - but singles like "Beautiful Monster" and "One In A Million" (number 93 on this list) were as good as anything he'd released before.

Number 20 "Indestructible" by RobynMentioned belowNumber 19 "Submission" by DelphicMentioned belowNumber 18 "If I Had You" by Adam LambertWith his first decent-sized hit (2009's "Whataya Want From Me") under his studded belt, Adam Lambert stuck with the Max Martin productions for his next single - which became his biggest single in Australia, reaching number 4 and selling slightly more than "Whataya Want From Me". Although he could have kept releasing singles from For Your Entertainment, Adam's only other 2010 release was promotional single "Fever" (number 94 on this list).

Number 17 "Bang Bang Bang" by Mark Ronson & The Business Intl featuring Q-TipHaving established himself as an artist in his own right and not just a producer - thanks to his reinterpretations of other people's songs on the Version album - Mark Ronson returned to releasing original music in 2010. Well, an original song that borrowed from nursery rhyme "Alouette". "Bang Bang Bang" was the lead single from Record Collection and became Mark's most successful non-cover version and his first top 50 hit in Australia.

Number 16 "You've Changed" by SiaShe'd been quietly beavering away on the outskirts of the mainstream for a decade, but in 2010, Sia Furler started to get the recognition she deserved - and it was all thanks to her We Are Born album, which featured "You've Changed" and "Clap Your Hands" (number 83 on this list). Both singles became Sia's first songs to chart inside the ARIA top 50, while the album improved on her previous albums chart peak by 39 spots when it reached number 2.

Number 15 "Fader" by The Temper TrapAfter all the fuss that was made of The Temper Trap's debut single, "Sweet Disposition", I'm surprised this third single from Conditions wasn't a bigger hit, since it's easily just as catchy - if not more so. Only just scraping into the ARIA top 50 on its original release early in 2010, "Fader" was re-promoted later in the year after the song popped up in movies, TV shows and ads - and it was all that attention that sold the song to me.

Number 14 "Butterfly, Butterfly (The Last Hurrah)" by a-haMost people outside of Norway would probably have been shocked to discover synthpop trio a-ha were still releasing music in 2010 - but the band behind iconic '80s hit "Take On Me" actually bowed out of the music industry with this, their final ever single. A great end to a career I'd followed over the two-and-a-half decades since that global chart-topper.

Number 13 "Doubt" by DelphicMentioned belowNumber 12 "Turn It Up" by GrumFrom synthpop legends to a new name in the genre: Grum, whose real name is actually Graeme Shepherd. "Turn It Up" wasn't released as a single from debut album Heartbeats, but it was a standout track for me after featuring as an iTunes single of the week. A song that was issued as a single was "Through The Night" (number 48 on this list), which came with an awesome video inspired by '80s cop shows.

Number 11 "In My Head" by Jason DeruloDarkchild, RedOne... singers had been singing the names of the producers of their records for years, so why not their own? In 2010, a male artist arrived on the scene who quickly became known for incorporating his name into his tunes. I remember interviewing him around the time of debut single "Watcha Say" and asking him about the practice, but by the time he served as a judge on short-lived dance show Everybody Dance Now, I was warned ahead of the interview not to ask him about it. Guess the novelty wore off.Back in 2010, Jason's name quickly became uttered in the same sentence as Usher and Ne-Yo thanks to the R&B/dance sound of hit singles like "In My Head", "What If" (number 25 on this list) and "The Sky's The Limit", and album track "Love Hangover" (number 57), as well as his slick dance moves.

Number 10 "DJ (I Could Be Dancing)" by AlphabeatHere's another excellent single from Danish pop combo Alphabeat's second album, which was alternatively titled The Spell or The Beat Is... depending on where you lived. "DJ" was followed by either "Heatwave" (number 69 on this list) or "Hole In My Heart" (number 78) - again, depending on the territory. But, it was album track "Always Up With You" (number 37) that was my next favourite song of theirs in 2010.

Number 9 "Get Outta My Way" by Kylie MinogueMentioned in Part 3 and previously featured hereNumber 8 "Left Too Late" by FlorrieNext up, an artist who is still to release a full album and instead has regularly issued EPs of new material. Not only a singer, Florence Arnold is also a songwriter (she co-wrote the song at number 2 on this list) and, most interestingly, a drummer - serving as the in-house drummer for pop production supremos Xenomania since 2008. "Left Too Late" was taken from Florrie's debut EP, Introduction.

Number 7 "Ambitions" by Joe McElderryAfter winning season six of the UK version of The X Factor, 19-year-old Joe McElderry should have been a shoe-in for the Christmas number 1 in 2009 with his version of Miley Cyrus' "The Climb", but a social media campaign supporting Rage Against The Machine's "Killing In The Name" put paid to that (although Joe rose to the summit after the festive season). For single number two, Joe (or his record company) went with another cover - this time a remake of the debut single by Norwegian pop group Donkeyboy, a number 1 for them back home and in Sweden in 2009. Joe's version upped the pace and made "Ambitions" even more of a joyous pop anthem, but it didn't quite achieve the desired result in the UK, peaking at number 6. That was considerably better, however, than follow-up "Someone Wake Me Up" (number 96 on this list), which bombed at number 68. Things followed a predictable course after that - Joe was let go from his record deal with Syco and a career in covers albums, reality TV and musical theatre beckoned.

Number 6 "Tokyo (Vampires And Wolves)" by The WombatsAnother act rather fond of an EP is this indie band from Liverpool - that's Liverpool, UK and not Liverpool, Australia, although given the band name and the title of their debut release, Girls, Boys and Marsupials, you'd be forgiven for making that mistake. This lead single from the This Modern Glitch album was a bit more synth-y than normal, which explains why it's far and away my favourite song by the band.

Number 5 "Hang With Me" by RobynWere they EPs or mini-albums? Either way, Robyn's three Body Talk releases were another spin on the traditional release system - and it was pretty exciting to get a batch of new songs from her every few months. Especially when they were as good as "Hang With Me" from Body Talk Pt. 2, "Indestructible" (number 20 on this list) and "Time Machine" (number 22) - both from Body Talk Pt. 3 - and "Dancing On My Own" (number 31) from Body Talk Pt. 1. In an especially busy year for the Swedish star, she also performed on "Caesar" by I Blame Coco (number 70).

Number 4 "Wonderful Life" by HurtsMentioned belowNumber 3 "Halcyon" by DelphicIn any other year, Delphic would have been my favourite new band, thanks to singles "Halcyon" and "Doubt" (number 13 on this list), and album track "Submission" (number 19), which were all taken from debut album Acolyte and bore more than a passing resemblance to the sound of New Order. Not that that's a bad thing!

Number 2 "One Touch" by Mini VivaPreviously featured hereNumber 1 "Better Than Love" by HurtsBeating Delphic to the title of my favourite new band for 2010 was this duo, also from the UK. Comprised of sharp-suited vocalist Theo Hutchcraft and just-as-slick keyboard player Adam Anderson, Hurts followed in the tradition of Pet Shop Boys with songs like "Better Than Love" and "Wonderful Life" (number 4 on this list) expertly blending joy and melancholy over a synthesised beat. Strangely, neither song was particularly big in the UK - although album Happiness did make the top 5 - but they did achieve top 10 positions across Europe.

My top 200 for 2010 in full:

1 BETTER
THAN LOVE Hurts

2 ONE
TOUCH Mini Viva

3 HALCYON Delphic

4 WONDERFUL
LIFE Hurts

5 HANG
WITH ME Robyn

6 TOKYO (VAMPIRES AND WOLVES) The Wombats

7 AMBITIONS
Joe McElderry

8 LEFT TOO LATE Florrie

9 GET OUTTA MY WAY Kylie Minogue

10 DJ (I COULD BE DANCING) Alphabeat

11 IN
MY HEAD Jason Derulo

12 TURN IT UP Grum

13 DOUBT Delphic

14 BUTTERFLY,
BUTTERFLY (THE LAST HURRAH) a-ha

15 FADER The Temper Trap

16 YOU’VE CHANGED Sia

17 BANG BANG BANG Mark Ronson & The Business Intl
featuring Q-Tip

18 IF I HAD YOU Adam Lambert

19 SUBMISSION Delphic

20 INDESTRUCTIBLE
Robyn

21 BEAUTIFUL MONSTER Ne-Yo

22 TIME
MACHINE Robyn

23 HIGHER
The Saturdays featuring Flo Rida

24 LOSE
MY MIND The Wanted

25 WHAT IF Jason Derulo

26 LOVE
PART II Bright Light Bright Light

27 DANCE IN THE DARK Lady Gaga

28 BROKEN HEELS Alexandra Burke

29 DJ GOT US FALLING IN LOVE Usher featuring Pitbull

30 ON AND ON Agnes

31 DANCING ON MY OWN Robyn

32 ALL NIGHT LONG Alexandra Burke featuring Pitbull

33 HIGHER Taio Cruz featuring Kylie Minogue

34 WAY BACK HOME Bag Raiders

35 I AM YOUR SKIN The Bravery

36 POISON Nicole Scherzinger

37 ALWAYS UP WITH YOU Alphabeat

38 LIGHTS
DOWN LOW Kim Wilde

39 ROCKET Goldfrapp

40 BITTERSWEET
Sophie Ellis-Bextor

41 ALIVE Goldfrapp

42 GRENADE Bruno Mars

43 UMBRELLA BEACH Owl City

44 PROMISE
THIS Cheryl Cole

45 WE RULE THE WORLD Dragonette

46 THE
FLOOD Take That

47 STARRY EYED Ellie Goulding

48 THROUGH
THE NIGHT Grum

49 HISTORY
Groove Armada featuring Will Young

50 JUST
THE WAY YOU ARE Bruno Mars

51 SYMMETRY Little Boots featuring Phil Oakey

52 DON’T STOP Annie

53 RAISE YOUR GLASS Pink

54 O.N.E Yeasayer

55 ANNIE
YOU SAVE ME Grafitti6

56 TEENAGE DREAM Glee Cast

57 LOVE HANGOVER Jason Derulo

58 STAND
UP Cheryl Cole

59 GIVE IT UP Maniac

60 COMMANDER Kelly Rowland featuring David Guetta

61 MISERY Maroon 5

62 HEARTS DON’T LIE Gabriella Cilmi

63 OVERCOME Alexandra Burke

64 ACAPELLA Kelis

65 BABY I’M GETTING BETTER Gyroscope

66 ALL
YOU NEED IS NOW Duran Duran

67 LOVE LOVE LOVE Agnes

68 FIND YOUR LOVE Drake

69 HEATWAVE Alphabeat

70 CAESAR I Blame Coco featuring Robyn

71 I WANNA LIFE Goldfrapp

72 HAPPINESS / WIDEBOYS MIX Alexis Jordan

73 FREEFALLIN’ Zoe Badwi

74 NOT
IN LOVE Crystal Castles featuring Robert Smith

75 JACKSON’S
LAST STAND Ou Est Le Swimming Pool

76 HANDS Ting Tings

77 MORE
(REDONE JIMMY JOKER REMIX) Usher

78 HOLE
IN MY HEART Alphabeat

79 CRUEL INTENTIONS Simian Mobile Disco featuring Beth Ditto

80 THE SKY’S THE LIMIT Jason Derulo

81 PARTY
GIRL McFly

82 WEAR
MY KISS Sugababes

83 CLAP YOUR HANDS Sia

84 DANCE THE WAY I FEEL Ou Est Le Swimming Pool

85 LOCO Annie

86 LAST DAYS OF DISCO Robbie Williams

87 ON A MISSION Gabriella Cilmi

88 ALL THE LOVERS Kylie Minogue

89 ONLY GIRL (IN THE WORLD) Rihanna

90 MOON THEORY Miami
Horror

91 ANIMAL
Neon Trees

92 MAGIC B.o.B featuring Rivers Cuomo

93 ONE IN A MILLION Ne-Yo

94 FEVER Adam Lambert

95 BETTER THAN TODAY Kylie Minogue

96 SOMEONE WAKE ME UP Joe McElderry

97 WHITE KNUCKLE RIDE Jamiroquai

98 THE KEY Ou Est Le Swimming Pool

99 WATERCOLOUR Pendulum

100 MEMORIES David Guetta featuring Kid Cudi

101 TEENAGE DREAM Katy Perry

102 BELIEVER Goldfrapp

103 ONE BEAT AWAY Cicada

104 LOVE GET OUT OF MY WAY Monarchy

105 LIGHTS OUT Rick Astley

106 WITCHCRAFT Pendulum

107 ALL TIME LOW Wanted

108 HELLO Potbelleez

109 GOLD DUST DJ Fresh

110 MY WICKED HEART Diana Vickers

111 PUNCHING IN A DREAM The Naked & Famous

112 HURTFUL Erik Hassle

113 CLOSE TO YOU / FEAR OF TIGERS MIX The Venus Stare

114 NOT MYSELF TONIGHT Christina Aguilera

115 STAY TOO LONG Plan B

116 DYNAMITE Taio Cruz

117 EGO The Saturdays

118 I’M IN LOVE (I WANNA DO IT) Alex Gaudino

119 POP GOES THE WORLD Gossip

120 INVISIBLE LIGHT Scissor Sisters

121 NIGHT BY NIGHT Chromeo

122 NOTHIN’ ON YOU B.o.B featuring Bruno Mars

123 UNBROKEN Stan Walker

124 YESTERDAY Toni Braxton

125 CARRY OUT Timbaland featuring Justin Timberlake

126 JUST A DREAM Nelly

127 NIGHT IS YOUNG Nelly Furtado

128 THE FEAR INSIDE Frankmusik

129 4TH OF JULY (FIREWORKS) Kelis

130 WOULD YOU RAISE YOUR HANDS? Rogue Traders

131 THE ISLAND Pendulum

132 HOT MESS Chromeo

133 UNDER THE SHEETS Ellie Goulding

134 TOGETHER Pet Shop Boys

135 ONE Sky Ferreira

136 FALL IN LOVE Estelle

137 JE NE SAIS QUOI Hera Bjork

138 HOLIDAYS Miami Horror featuring Alan Palomo

139 SATURDAY NIGHT Jessica Mauboy featuring Ludacris

140 COLD WAR Janelle Monae

141 SUNLIGHT Bag Raiders

142 GROOVE ME Maximum Balloon

143 ANY WHICH WAY Scissor Sisters

144 CLUB CAN’T HANDLE ME Flo Rida featuring David Guetta

145 BRING NIGHT Sia

146 RIDIN’ SOLO Jason Derulo

147 I LOOK TO YOU Miami Horror featuring Kimbra

148 UNDISCLOSED DESIRES Muse

149 KICKSTARTS Example

150 F U Cee Lo Green

151 SEEK BROMANCE Tim Berg

152 MARRY YOU Bruno Mars

153 ALEJANDRO Lady Gaga

154 BARBRA STREISAND Duck Sauce

155 IT’S OK Cee-Lo Green

156 REAL LIFE Kim Wilde

157 PARACHUTE Cheryl Cole

158 DO YOU MIND Robbie Williams

159 WHY DON’T YOU LOVE ME Beyonce Knowles

160 COOLER THAN ME Mike Posner

161 DIRTY TALK Wynter Gordon

162 BORDERLINE/OPEN YOUR HEART Glee Cast

163 CHAMPAGNE LIFE Ne-Yo

164 CRASH & BURN Sugababes

165 LOVE DON’T LIVE HERE Bananarama

166 TURN IT UP Pixie Lott

167 PUT IT IN A LOVE SONG Alicia Keys / Beyonce Knowles

168 RUDE BOY Rihanna

169 DON’T TURN THE LIGHTS ON Chromeo

170 PYRAMID Charice featuring Iyaz

171 GUNS AND HORSES Ellie Goulding

172 YOU’VE GOT THE LOVE Florence & The Machine

173 RUN AWAY Sunstroke Project & Olia Tira

174 VOLCANO Dragonette

175 I’M IN HERE Sia

176 CROSSFIRE Brandon Flowers

177 DO YOU REMEMBER Jay Sean featuring Sean Paul & Lil Jon

178 CALL ON ME Andy Bell

179 THE CATALYST Linkin Park

180 COUNTERPOINT Delphic

181 FIRE WITH FIRE Scissor Sisters

182 STRIP ME Natasha Bedingfield

183 REPLAY Iyaz

184 PLEASE DON’T GO Mike Posner

185 THERE GOES MY BABY Usher

186 PRIVATE EYES The Bird And The Bee

187 DEVOTION Hurts featuring Kylie Minogue

188 ALL TO MYSELF Guy Sebastian

189 BLUE SKIES Jamiroquai

190 OMG / ALMIGHTY MIX Usher featuring Will.i.am

191 GIVE A LITTLE MORE Maroon 5

192 LIKE IT’S HER BIRTHDAY Good Charlotte

193 ALL I EVER WANTED Kelly Clarkson

194 THE BIKE SONG Mark Ronson & The Business Intl

195 WHERE I’M GOING Cut Copy

196 SOMEBODY TO LOVE ME Mark Ronson featuring Boy George

197 AIRPLANES B.o.B featuring Hayley Williams

198 BIGGER THAN US White Lies

199 ONE (YOUR NAME) Swedish House Mafia featuring Pharrell Williams

200 DIRTEE DISCO Dizzee Rascal

That just leaves 2011 - and I'll count down my top 100 songs from that year at the end of November/start of December.